2023-08-10 08:30:00
The Attorney General of the State of Ecuador confirmed that one of the suspects for the assassination of presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio died following being arrestedwounded by a bullet from the crossing with the security personnel present at the scene of the attack.
During the early hours of this Thursday, the deceased suspect was transferred by Legal Medicine to carry out the autopsy. The victim’s relatives approached the scene to confirm death from gunshot wounds.
Until now, no further information has been released regarding the authors of the attack in which Villavicencio received three shots to the head, and the authorities have not clarified whether it was perpetrated with a single striker, but there are already six detainees for the case.
As published by the authorities of the Prosecutor’s Office on his official X account (exTwitter), the man “was apprehended and transferred badly wounded to the Flagrancy Unit in Quito. An ambulance from the Fire Department confirmed his death.. The national police proceed with the removal of the body.
“Until now 9 injured are reported (victims of the attack), including a candidate for assembly and two police officers”, deepened the Prosecutor’s Office, which also reported that there are six detainees for raids carried out in the town of Conocoto and in the San Bartolo neighborhood, south of Quito.
As a consequence of the raids in Conocoto, found a vehicle that contained “a suitcase with weapons and grenades inside, indications that they are being placed in chain of custody.” They also revealed that the operations continued in the Guamaní neighborhood.
At the same time, the political party buildwho had Villavicencio as a presidential candidate, denounced through social networks that armed men they attacked his campaign offices in Quito, few hours following the attack once morest the journalist and ex-assembly member.
The candidate to succeed Guillermo Lasso had focused his campaign on the fight once morest corruption, illicit enrichment and organized crime networks. But Ecuador has suffered an onslaught of crime linked to drug trafficking in recent years, which almost doubled the homicide rate to 25 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2022.
Violence in the middle of the electoral process also leaves the murder of a mayor and a candidate for deputy. Before the local elections, held in February in Ecuador, two mayoral candidates were assassinated.
The attack on Fernando Villavicencio
The 59-year-old candidate for president of Ecuador, he was second in the polls, behind the correista Luisa González. Fernando Villavicencio was one of the eight presidential candidates for the early general elections to be held on August 20.
Villavicencio was a member of the opposition coalition Construye (List 25) and aspired to the presidency of his country, accompanied by Andrea González in the formula. In 2021 he was elected as a national assemblyman by the Honesty Alliance and, as a journalist, was in charge of publishing a bribery scheme during the term of former president Rafael Correafor which he was sentenced in absentia to eight years in prison.
This Wednesday, following a campaign event held at the Anderson school in Quito, while walking to his carVillavicencio was assassinated in an episode that the country’s main newspaper, The universe, defined as “in the hit man style and with three shots to the head”.
“We live a horror movie, with submachine guns were fired 30, 40 shotswe saw wounded fall, I know that there are some deceased, and painfully the murder of Fernando”, he declared to the press rooster valenciacandidate’s uncle.
Inside the school, his followers fell to the ground to protect themselves from the bullets and others ran desperate. Traces of blood were left on the ground. A policeman was rescued by several people following being left lying on the street, injured.
However, Last week, Villavicencio had already denounced on two occasions threats once morest his life and his campaign team, allegedly coming from the leader of a criminal gang linked to the drug traffickingwhich is detained.
Who was Fernando Villavicencio, the anti-corruption presidential candidate shot dead in Ecuador
For this reason, his uncle declared to the press: “We don’t understand where the police werewhere was the police guard”. Galo Valencia added that there might be “dozens” of victims, because, also, the police should have made the controlled detonation of an explosive device who was in the area.
“We generally held (meetings) in closed places precisely because of the danger he ran“, the candidate’s friend told the press, Carlos Figueroawith whom he hid for a long time in the jungle to evade a prison order for insulting Correa.
On September 3, 2022 Villavicencio had been the victim of another attack, without major consequences, when a burst of bullets hit his home. “The attack once morest my family is a barbaric response, in the face of my revelations regarding the links between organized crime and drug cartels with correísmo,” said the late politician.
“When politics becomes contaminated with drug trafficking, society succumbs to terror. Fear will not win this battle, “added the opponent, who in his recent campaign proposed launching a”Anti-impunity plan” which was supported by the so-called Financial and Economic Analysis Unit, defined by the politician as “the most powerful engine once morest illicit enrichment”.
Villavicencio’s initiative consisted of a 90-day plan during which said body had to identify “money laundering and illicit enrichment of judges, prosecutors, police, military, prison staff, civil servants, dignitaries and their relatives“.
“Justice will no longer be the revolving door for criminals,” promised the presidential candidate at the end of his spot. His motto was “It is time for the brave”.
ML / ED
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